 |  |
salvation. It may be fanciful, but it is at least suggestive, that the name John Anderson
means The Gift of God, the Son of man. John, and Jonathan, are composed of Nathan, a
gift, and the name Jah. Andrew, which is allied to Anderson, is the genitive form of the
Greek aner, man. The reader will find the subject of Refuge elaborated in a series of
articles in Volume XXX entitled "The Eternal God is thy Refuge" (also in pamphlet
form) and from some of the Scripture references appearing therein we now quote.
"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psa. 46: 1).
"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of
the Almighty" (Psa. 91: 1).
"Thou has been a shelter for me" (Psa. 61: 3).
We may be surprised to find in Scripture such a modern term as a shelter from blast,
or to read of effective protection against incendiaries, but they are there:
"A Refuge from the storm . . . . . when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm
against the wall" (Isa. 25: 4).
"The shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the
wicked" (Eph. 6: 16).
Decontamination is provided by "the washing of water by the Word" (Eph. 5: 26);
and the complete armour of God is detailed in Eph. 6: 14-17. The one weapon of
offence with which the believer is provided is "The sword of the Spirit, which is the
Word of God" (Eph. 6: 17). He is exhorted to "stand" rather than enter into a campaign;
he is so train and discipline himself that he may be able "to withstand in the evil day"
(Eph. 6: 13). Just as the civil population and peaceful towns and villages became, at
times, the front line, and just as the recent conflict was called "An all-in war", where the
slogan "Business as usual" was both untrue and impossible, so is it with the conflict of
truth and error. There can be no holding back: all the redeemed are intimately involved,
and their time, talents, and possessions must be freely used in the service of their Captain.
Unless we are watchful our "communications" will be cut, and many a believer has
become either a casualty or has given up the conflict, because his fellowship with God
has become slack or discontinued. Moreover, the enemy knows that starvation will bring
the proudest nation to its knees. To the believer, the Bread of Life is Christ as ministered
by the Word of God, and prayer is his line of communication, but the Scriptures represent
our food. If therefore either prayer or Bible study can be hindered, our spiritual foe will
gain an advantage.
Internal dissension, seeds of jealousy and distrust are fruitful causes of failure, as is
also distorted and partially-quoted truth. The leader of the opposing force is a "liar" and
a "murderer" (John 8: 44), and is obsessed with the awful ambition to occupy the place
that alone belongs to Deity (II Thess. 2: 4; Matt. 4: 9; Rev. 13: 4).
Thus at every turn, the recent earthly conflict reflected the heavenly in unseen warfare.
Terms of victory and the true meaning of peace will be considered in a separate series
of articles, which should be consulted. Perhaps enough has been said in the present series